For over a century and a half, the Fifth Report has shaped our conception of what happened in rural Bengal in the late eighteenth century. The evidence contained in the Fifth Report is invaluable. In fact, recent researches show that the arguments and evidence offered by the Fifth Report cannot be accepted uncritically. Researchers have carefully examined the archives of various Bengal zamindars and the local records of the districts to write about the history of colonial rule in rural Bengal.
Some lines have been left out at the end of the passage. What do those missing lines say the researchers found about the Fifth Report?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → It exaggerated the fall in the power of the old landholding families.
Option (1) It exaggerated the rise of the jotedars in the villages of Bengal. — Incorrect. Jotedars were rich peasants of Bengal villages, a different group. The researchers' finding about the report is not about them.
Option (2) It exaggerated the fall in the power of the old landholding families. — Correct. From zamindari archives and district records, researchers found the report exaggerated the collapse of traditional zamindari power. It also overestimated how much land zamindars were losing, since many kept their estates even after auctions.
Option (3) It exaggerated the success of the Permanent Settlement. — Incorrect. The report was written to criticise the Company's rule. Its overstatement concerned the fall of the zamindars.
Option (4) It exaggerated the revenue that the Company collected from Bengal. — Incorrect. The researchers' finding concerns zamindars losing power and land, a point unrelated to the Company's revenue.
NCERT (2026-27): “1.6 The Fifth Report … |